Field
The disclosure relates generally to wireless communications, and specifically to mechanisms associated with a wireless communications device in a roaming environment.
Background Art
Modern telecommunications networks and devices offer a wide variety of protocols that have evolved over the past decades. Beginning in 1981 with analog wireless (also known as first generation, or “1G”), new generations of wireless service have emerged that provide the market place with every increasing digital throughputs. In 1992, digital wireless service (second generation or “2G”) emerged, followed by third generation (3G) service in 2001, which provided multimedia and data support. The year 2011 saw the emergence of fourth generation (4G) wireless services, which are all-IP (internet protocol) networks.
Early protocols such as 1G and 2G protocols were focused exclusively on voice calls. However, data has become increasingly important in wireless communications beginning with various incremental enhancements to the 2G protocols. The pivotal importance of data in the modern day marketplace is best appreciated by the fact that 4G protocols are packet-based networks, with no provision for circuit-switched services such as voice calls.
Despite the wide bandwidth associated with 4G protocols, laptop applications have the potential to require the communication of substantial amounts of data. The rapid rise in popularity of smart phones, and their associated applications, has further exacerbated the demands for the communication of large quantities of data. While wireless service providers have welcomed the demand for their services, they have recognized the importance to adopt appropriate charging profiles so that larger consumers of data are properly charged for the provision of these services. Different charging profiles have surfaced such as an overall limit per month, with additional charges for excesses over that limit being commonplace.
Charging for data usage also occurs when roaming users consume data. Roaming users are users who have travelled outside of their home cellular coverage area. In these situations, wireless service providers have reciprocal agreements to service consumers of other wireless service providers. However, those agreement often result in steep charges for roaming users who consumer data and make voice calls outside their home area.
The charging profiles associated with roaming conditions pose a particular problem for consumers, and in particular smart phone users. Smart phone applications typically will autonomously run background applications in accordance with a variety of requirements, such as updating software to the latest version. Unlike voice calls, such background applications do not typically require the input or approval of the user to run these background applications. Furthermore, the timing of activation of these applications is generally not critical, and could be equally done when the user returns to the home cellular coverage area of the user.